Cloth anchorage means for pool tables



July 17, 1956 A. D. ALLMAN 2,755,088

CLOTH ANCHORAGE MEANS FOR POOL TABLES Mil -v FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 5.

Filed May 12, 1952 FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 6.

FIGURE FIGURE 7.

INVENTOR.

ARVEL D. ALLMAN ATTORNEY nited States Patent CLQTH RAGE F OR. POOL TABLES Arvel D. Allman, Kansas City, Mo., assignor of one-hall to Birt Bourret, Kansas City, Mo.

Application May 12, 1952, Serial No. 287,447

1 Claim. (Cl. 273-7) This invention relates to the improvement of a cloth cover anchorage on billiard pool and snooker tables having the cloth securing or holding members located near the juncture of the inside of the rail of the table with the table top surface so that all of the pieces of cloth may appear on the table and bumper rail as one unit and be anchored or replaced with similar cloths without the removal of the bumper rail from the table.

The conventional billiard pool and snooker tables are well known to be of rectangular shape with pockets provided in the corners and sides of the bed and a bumper rail around the edges of the table bed for deflection of the billiard ball movements. The bed and bumper rails are covered with cloth tacked around the edges between the bed and bumper rails and the rails are butted over the tackings to conceal the tacks. Most tables have some form of bumper rails bolted to the table from the under side of the bed. The cloth covers are often soiled by careless players with soda pop, liquor or dirty hands. Some cloths are torn by the ferrule on the end of the cue.

Heretofore billiard and pool table cloths have been changed by removing the rails of the table and the clean cloth coverage is usually tacked to the outer edges of the table. This means that the old cloth tacks must be removed before another cloth is tacked to the table. The bumper rails of the conventional table are bolted thereto and must be removed. These operations require considerable time. Another form of replacing the cloth in the prior art is to anchor the cloth after the bumper table rails have been removed and fasten the edges of the cloth with holding members that require considerable time and labor.

An object of the present invention is to save in cloth area by covering the bed of the table or near the bottom inner edges of the bumper table rail and provide improved table cloth holding members for gripping the cloth near the edges thereof to stretch the cloth tightly over the bed of the table. The table cloth holding members are held in position against the bumper rail by retainer cam screws preferably screwed into the bumper table rail, the retainer cam and screws being turned preferably 180 degrees for latching or releasing of the table cloth holding members.

Another object of the present improved invention is to stretch the cloth on the bumper rails with bumper cloth holding members manually pressed against the cloth and against the bumper rail and the table, the bumper cloth holding member being retained in position by very few tacks driven into the bumper rails. The bolts of the bumper rails may be slackened when necessary for the reception or withdrawal of the bumper cloth holding members.

Another object of the present improved invention is to combine these last two mentioned objects by having the bumper cloth holding member placed close enough to the intersection of the bumper rail with the table bed to allow sufiicient room for the loose edges of the table cloth and the table cloth holding members and still leave 2,755,033 Ice Patented July 17, 1956 2v sutficient room to clear the billiard balls when they strike the bumper noses ofthe table bumper rails.

Another object of the present improved invention is to provide prongs on the table cloth holding members with the prongs near the ends thereof pointed outwardly toward the ends of the members to hold the cloth in a stretched longitudinal directionwith respect to the length of the table cloth holding members.

With these and other objects in view the invention will be more fully understood from the accompanying drawing, the following specification and the scope of the appended claim.

Figure 1 is a view of a typical fragmentary perspective of a billiard pool table bed and bumper rail with the improved cloth holding members being illustrated in position holding the stretched cloths on the bumper nose rail and table bed.

Figure 2 is an enlarged end view of the cam of the latch screw for retaining the table cloth holding members in position.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal view of the cam latch screw.

Figure 4 is an enlarged transverse broken view illustrating the table cloth holding member with prongs embedded therein and having the points projecting outward sufliciently therefrom for gripping the table cloth.

Figure 5 is a bottom view of' Figure 4.

Figure 6 is an enlarged lateral broken view of the bumper cloth holding member for holding the bumper cloth on the bumper rail.

Figure 7 is a bottom view of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is an enlarged bottom view of one end of the table cloth holding member illustrating the prongs projected therefrom with the prongs near the end of the table cloth holding member being turned or inclined toward the end thereof to hold the cloth when stretched thereon.

The portion of a conventional pool table bed 9 is illustrated in Figure 1 including the conventional bumper rail 10 and is ordinarily secured to the table bed 9 by any of the well known methods used in the prior art, usually bolted through the rail and table bed, the method not being illustrated in this application because of the well known art.

It is well known that the conventional pool table is of rectangular shape and that a typical section taken through one side or corner of the table would be the same on any other side or end of the table. Therefore, the perspective view illustrated in Figure 1 represents a typical section through any side or any end of the table.

The bed 9 is covered with a table cloth or felt cover 11, substantially rectangular in shape wih each edge 12 of the cloth 11 cut approximately to fit the top of the bed 9 inside of the bottom 13 of the bumper table rail 10. The edges 12 of the table cloth 11 are each held in a stretched position by first being manually stretched longitudinally and anchored by the table cloth holding member 14. The table cloth holding member 14 is provided with a plurality of projected prongs 15. The prongs 15 slope or angle downwardly and outwardly through the bottom of the holding member 14 with respect to the nearest edges of the table.

The table cloth holding members 14 are positioned near the edges 12 of the cloth 11 and the cloth 11 is engaged by pressing each table cloth holding member 14 against the respective bumper nose rail 10 and table top or bed 9. Cam latches 16 are provided with wood screw threads 17 and preferably two or three cam latches 16 are used for latching each table cloth holding member 14. The cam latches 16 have their screws 17 screwed into the bumper rail 10 above the table cloth holding member 14 and are means to hold or anchor each table cloth holding member 14 in position against the bumper rail 10 and table top or bed 9. Other edges 12 are stretched manually one 3 at a time in like manner until the four edges 12 of the cloth 11 are anchored. The table cloth holding members 14 are obviously omitted across the pockets of the pool table which are not illustrated;

The typical bumper rail 10 is provided with the usual anchor bar 18. Starting with the upper edge 19 of the bumper cloth or felt cover 20 the cover is wrapped around the bar 18 to snugly fit or be manually wedged into the groove 21. The bumper cloth or felt cover 20 is manually stretched over the rubber bumper nose cushion 22, bumper rail 10 and laps under the bottom 13 for a short distance. The lap is accomplished by preferably vloosening the bumper rail bolts slightly and pressing the fine teeth 24 of the bumper cloth holding member 23 against the cloth or felt cover 20 where the bottom 13 of the bumper rail 10 intersects with the table top or bed 9. The fine teeth 24 of the bumper cloth holding member 23 are manually pressed in between the bumper rail 10 and bed 9 which stretches the cloth or felt cover 20. The fine teeth 24 and bumper cloth holding member 23 are preferably made from a bent strip of metal with the teeth being on one edge and the opposite edge of member 23 being bent upwardly and have holes 25 to receive tacks 26 driven therethrough into the bumper rail 10.

The bed cloth or felt cover 11 is changed more frequently than the bumper nose covers. However with my improvement when a nose cover change is required the nose cover is always changed before the bed cover is changed to provide access to the bumper cloth holding 4 members 23. Either the table cloth 11 or bumper cloth 20 or both may be changed without the bumper rail being removed. The bed and bumper rail when covered appear as one complete cover.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

A pool table having a cloh coverage over the table and bumper rail, the bumper rail being over the edge of the table, the table cloth and bumper rail cloth terminating near the juncture of the inside edge of the bumper rail with the table, a table cloth holding member, a bumper cloth holding member, said table cloth holding member being secured to the inside of the bumper rail near the juncture thereof with the table, said bumper cloth holding member being secured to the inside edge of the bumper rail near the juncture thereof with the table, said bumper cloth holding member securing the edge of the bumper cloth below the bumper rail, said table cloth holding member securing the table cloth edge close to said bumper cloth holding member so that all of the cloths may appear as one unit and be replaced with similar cloths without the removal of the bumper rail from the table.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 889,843 Barrett June 2, 1908 1,579,730 Nelson Apr. 6, 1926 

